Nutty Chick Cookies

Yesterday I found a cute idea online for making little chicks out of macaroon cookies using nuts for the feet and beak and feathers. I happened to be making nutty tuile cookies yesterday, so I decided to try to form some of them into little chicks since Easter is just around the corner.

Well, they don't look as good as the macaroon version, but they have their own kind of charm to them. While the tuile cookies were still hot, I balled them up and allowed them to cool. I also left some of the cookies just flat. I used melted chocolate to attach a cashew halve to the bottom of the chicks for feet, and an almond for a beak, and colored candy coated chocolates for the eyes, and a piece of flat tuile for the top feathers.
The tuile recipe I used is the same one I used for the tuile cups for my pear ginger sorbet the other week, except I used a mixture of nuts instead of just hazelnuts this time.

Chick Deviled Eggs

I've never made (or had) deviled eggs before, but I figure I might as well try them for Easter, and make them look like chicks while I was at it to better suit the occasion. To do this, simply hard-boil as many eggs as you need. Actually, technically speaking, eggs should never be boiled, as this causes a sulfur reaction that makes the grey rings around the yolks. Eggs should be simmered gently until of desired doneness.
Once cool, carefully peel the eggs and cut off the top third. Cut a small slice off the bottom if needed so the egg stands up, or use egg cups. Carefully remove the yolks, and place them in a bowl. Mash with a little mustard, mayo, salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika, or whatever flavorings you would like. Then pipe, spoon, or scoop this mixture back into the eggs. Top with the top third of egg. Decorate with carrot slices for the beak and arms/feet, and black peppercorns or capers for the eyes. Garnish with chives as grass if desired. 

Cinnabunnies

I made some cinnamon rolls for an Easter brunch this year. Cinnamon rolls are a well-loved, sweet breakfast or brunch treat. Of course, I wanted to have something Easter themed as well, so I shaped the cinnamon rolls into bunny heads. I didn't use my favorite cinnamon roll recipe, because the dough is quite soft to work with and only makes nine rolls. I used my second favorite, one hour, cinnamon roll recipe, which uses a firmer dough. However, pretty much any cinnamon roll recipe could be shaped this way. I sliced the dough into sixteen slices, and chose the eight prettiest slices to use as the bunny heads. Then I unrolled the remaining eight cinnamon rolls and folded them as shown, using a little melted butter to attach it to the bunny head. I then used chocolate chips for the eyes and small red candy-coated chocolates for the nose. Sliced almonds could be added as bunny teeth, if desired. Then I baked them on a cookie sheet as usual. I think they make a cute addition to an Easter brunch. 

Coconut Cream Easter Nests

Here are some little Easter basket desserts I made. I have often seen ideas for Easter basket cupcakes, but I didn't want cupcakes. Then I thought of coconut cream pies, since coconut seems to be a popular flavor around Easter time as well. They turned out very nicely. Miniature cheesecakes would work well with this idea too.

Coconut Cream Easter Nests
1 cup granulated (white) sugar
3 Tablespoons all-purpose (plain) flour
pinch salt
3 cups milk (use coconut for more coconut flavor)
3 large eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups shredded coconut
1 Tablespoon coconut oil
1 teaspoon coconut or vanilla extract

In a medium saucepan, whisk together the sugar, flour, and salt. Slowly whisk in the milk, then bring the mixture almost to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for two minutes until thickened. Add a few spoonfuls of this hot mixture to the eggs to temper them, then slowly whisk the eggs into the mixture. Return to heat, and bring just about to a boil, then simmer for two minutes more. Remove from heat, then stir in the coconut, oil, and extract.

This can now be used as a regular coconut cream pie filling - poured into a baked shell, covered with plastic wrap, and chilled until firm.
It may be baked as a crustless coconut cream pie - pour into a greased pie dish and bake at 325◦F for about 30 minutes until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

I divided my pie filling mixture among twelve paper-lined muffin cups with an unbaked chocolate crumb crust on the bottom. I sprinkled a little extra coconut on top. Then I baked them for about 20 minutes until set.

To make Easter baskets: Cool the miniature pies, then peel off the paper linings. Place a few jelly beans, candy eggs, or chocolate eggs in the center of each. I used dried fruit to look like eggs. Pipe some melted chocolate onto parchment paper to resemble basket handles, then stick into the pies once hardened. Use white chocolate to make a few bunnies as well.

Easter Brunch

This year was the first year I had an Easter brunch. Actually, I can't really remembering having many brunches at all, unless you count sleeping in late enough to miss breakfast. Usually for Easter we do the Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's meal of turkey and all the trimmings. This year though, with less people home to celebrate, we were invited to a lovely Easter brunch!

 It turned out to be quite extravagant, beautifully presented, and extremely tasty! Here are a few pictures of the table settings and some of the food. On the table (I will go clockwise from twelve o'clock, though not everything can be seen in the photo) there was: nutella-filled croissants, honey, bunny-shaped cinnamon rolls I made, jam, butter, a deli meat platter, a homemade dip, a cheese platter including gouda, cheese wedges, brie, and boursin spreadable cheese, complete with radish garnishes, cinnamon brown sugar spread, braided sweet bread, herb bread, whole grain bread, nutella, and peanut butter. In the center there is an assortment of colored hard-boiled eggs and some salmon.

 In addition to what is on the table so far, there were also ham mini quiches, salmon mini quiches, and cheese mini quiches, chick deviled eggs I made, and fried potatoes and mushrooms.

For dessert there was plenty of chocolate on the table - this cute display of fancy Easter chocolates, as well as some carefully chosen chocolate bunnies and eggs placed at each table setting (mine was dark chocolate). There was also the Easter egg cake I made and featured in yesterday's post, and even a chocolate tea.
I really like the idea of an Easter brunch, with amazing food and great company, and I definitely enjoyed the morning! Even the sun was shining outside. 

Easter Egg Cake

I like to bake and decorate a cake every year for Easter. And of course, I always like to change it up. I've done plenty of bunny head cakes in the past, as well as a full bunny cake, a chick cake, a basket cake, cupcakes, and a cake with a bunny and a chick. I've done chocolate, carrot, pineapple, spice, red velvet, and hummingbird cakes. This year I decided to make a lemon Easter egg cake with vanilla buttercream filling and chocolate ganache. 

To make the egg cake, I baked my lemon cake in two eight inch round pans. Once cool, I cut both cakes in two pieces, slightly off the center. I frosted the bottom of both larger pieces with vanilla buttercream and sandwiched them together, cut portions down, on a platter. Then I frosted one side of each of the smaller pieces and stuck them on either side of the large pieces. Then I trimmed the cake so it was level and more egg-shaped. Next, I covered the entire cake with chocolate ganache. Then I colored the buttercream purple, yellow, and green to decorate the cake. I used different tips - a grass tip to decorate the tray around the cake, a flower tip to make purple flowers, a yellow tip to make stars and decorations. I also wrote Happy Easter in the middle of the cake.

When constructing this cake, it helps to briefly freeze the layers before cutting and decorating to make them firmer and less crumbly. In an upcoming post I will share the lemon cake recipe.

Hot Cross Spiced Fruit Muffins

Hot Cross Spiced Fruit Muffins

1 cup butter or hard margarine, softened

1 ½ cups granulated (white) sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups buttermilk

4 cups all-purpose (plain) flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 cup raisins

1 cup glazed mixed fruit, chopped

Desired icing or frosting (or icing sugar mixed with enough water or milk to make a thick, pipeable icing. Add a pinch of cinnamon, citrus zest, or a dash of vanilla, almond, or lemon extract for flavor, if desired)

Preheat oven to 350◦F. Grease or line muffin cups.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Beat in the vanilla, then the milk.  Stir in the flour, baking powder, soda, salt, and cinnamon. Stir in the raisins and fruit. Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups. Bake for about 20 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool, then pipe crosses on each muffin with the icing. Makes 36 muffins.

Hot cross buns are traditionally served around Easter time - particularly on Good Friday, which is what the crosses represent. They tend to be a sweet, spiced bun with fruit, usually raisins or currants. I have made a few variations on the traditional buns in the past, here are the links: {Hot Cross Biscuits}, {Hot Cross Muffins}. I have also made Chocolate Hot Cross Buns, but that was back before I began blogging.

Lemon Chick Cookies

It's easy to make cookies look like chicks, even without a cookie cutter! The lemon cake mix also makes the cookies yellow like chicks without any additional ingredients, and provides a nice flavor as well.

Lemon Chick Cookies
2 packages (two layer size) instant lemon cake mix
2/3 cup oil
4 large egg yolks
2 large eggs
sprinkles, dried fruit, chocolate chips, coconut, or candies to decorate

Preheat oven to 350◦F. Grease or line baking sheets.
Mix together the cake mix, oil, and eggs until well blended. Mixture will seem quite dry at first but will come together and will be quite stiff.
Roll the dough into balls - large balls for the bottom of the chick and smaller balls for the head. Stick the two together, just touching each other, and place cookies a few inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Decorate as desired to resemble chicks. I used small round red sprinkles for the eyes, an orange sprinkle for the beak, and toasted coconut for the feathers on top of the head.
Bake for about ten minutes until just beginning to brown. Allow to stand on the cookie sheet for a few minutes to firm up. Makes about 30 chicks.
Alternately, the cookies may be decorated as chicks with icing once cool. 

Easter Biscuits

It's hard to believe it is nearly Easter time again already! I am beginning to get into the Easter spirit by baking some Easter treats, as yesterday's post also featured. Biscuits are a versatile baked good, great with dinner, breakfast, as a snack, or even for dessert. Biscuits are easy to make, easy to flavor in different ways, and always seem to be a hit. But one of the best things about biscuits is that they can be shaped in many different ways. Biscuits can be dropped from a spoon, cut into rounds, or cut into squares, rectangles, or triangles so there are no scraps. They can be pull-apart or baked in a pan. They can be baked on top of casseroles or cooked on top of soups and stews. But they can also be cut into any shape imaginable - as there are cookie (or biscuit) cutters in pretty much every shape imaginable as well. Here I have cut biscuits into the shapes of Easter bunnies and eggs. 

Everyone seems to have their own favorite biscuit recipe. Some like butter, some prefer shortening or margarine; some have egg; some use milk instead of water; some have add-ins such as herbs or cheese; some require a lot of kneading, and some are no-knead. I have a few great biscuit recipes in my head, and choose which one to use depending on exactly what I plan to do with them. For these biscuits, I used my best cut-out biscuit recipe, a dough that is really easy to work with and very tasty to eat. 

Easter Nest Macaroons

Coconut Macaroons
4 large egg whites
pinch salt
1 1/2 cups granulated (white) sugar
2 cups shredded coconut
candy Easter eggs, jelly beans, etc.

Preheat oven to 325◦F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, beat the egg whites and salt until soft peaks form.
Gradually add the sugar, beating to stiff peaks.
Fold in the coconut. 
Spoon tablespoons a few inches apart on prepared cookies sheets.
Bake for 15 minutes until just firm and golden.
Immediately press candies in the center as desired, then allow to cool before removing from cookie sheet.

This is a cute and really easy cookie recipe that resembles little Easter nests, depending on the type of candy you use. You could leave the centers plain, or press any type of candy, chocolate, fruit, or nut in the center to suit every occasion. Macaroons have a pleasantly crisp and chewy light texture. 

Easter Cupcakes

Happy Easter Everyone!
In lieu of an elaborate Easter cake, which is what I normally make every year, I decided to go with some simple Easter cupcakes this year. I have already done bunny cakes, a chick cake, and a basket cake, but I have never done them as cupcakes, and I had a few more ideas up my sleeve as well. I made some red velvet cupcakes, as I have already made several carrot cakes and chocolate cakes, and red velvet is I flavor I have never made before; for which I will definitely be sharing the recipe soon. Then I made some cream cheese icing, which is a classic pairing for red velvet cake. Cream cheese frosting is a bit softer and more difficult to pipe with, but it is a good flavor for spring, and a good choice if you don't need to pipe borders or anything. Next I went to town on the decorations. 
Clockwise, starting from "12 o'clock":

• Bunny Butt cupcake with green icing in a grass tip and white icing in a star tip. If you don't get it, just search bunny butt cupcakes or cakes and you'll see many similar, but more elaborate, creations.
• Bunny cupcake using white frosting, candy coated chocolates, and frosting coated thin cookies as ears.
• Bird's Nest cupcake with chocolate cream cheese frosting in a grass tip, yellow piped chicks, and candy coated chocolate eggs.
• Chick cupcake with yellow frosting in a swirl tip and candy coated chocolate eye and beak.
• Egg Nest with green grass tip piping and candy-coated chocolate eggs.
• Lamb cupcake (not Santa) with white frosting in an open round tip and candy eyes and nose.
• Easter Basket cupcake with chocolate cream cheese frosting piped in a basket weave design and chocolate eggs. If you have a piece of licorice on hand, use it for the basket handle (I didn't have any).
• Easter Egg with white frosting and candy and sprinkle decorations.
• Happy Easter cupcake in the center with green icing base and yellow piping.

I made two of each cupcake, but only one Happy Easter cupcake. Pictured here are all of the "better halves". I also have individual pictures of each, so if you want to see a close-up, let me know.

Bunny Ganache Truffles

These are a few little truffles I whipped up with leftover ganache from yesterday's cake. I tried to shape them into bunnies, which wasn't easy with really soft ganache. The recipe said extra ganache could be chilled and then rolled into truffles. I might have needed to chill it longer, or even put it in the freezer, as it was still really messy. But ganache is rich, chocolaty and smooth, and I hate to waste! To make these bunnies, I rolled small balls, than a tiny ball for the tail. Then I used a pair of scissors to make two small cuts in the head for the ears. Because I had some leftover buttercream, I piped on some eyes and  a nose. Then I placed them on a plate with some candy coated chocolate eggs. I placed them in the fridge to harden before eating. These truffles can be kept in the fridge for at least a week or two, or frozen for longer storage. I think they look a little bit like cats, so I suppose I could make something like this for Halloween too!

Easter Celebration Cake

Happy Easter! Here is the cake I made this year for Easter. I kept it fairly simple, and stuck with a round cake instead of a shaped cake. Not necessarily to be quicker or easier, but for something different and also I had to make another round layer cake anyway. I began with my signature chocolate cake recipe. Then I tried something a little different. Normally I just stick to my standard buttercream icing to frost a cake, or my favorite fudge frosting if i am looking for chocolate. This time, I decided to try a simple chocolate ganache to cover the cake.  I have always seemed a little daunted by ganache, since it seems so decadent and professional. But I went with it today, and I am sure glad I did! Gananche is a lot easier, faster, and more smooth looking than whipping up buttercream, spreading it on, and struggling to get it smooth. And I bet some would say ganache tastes better too, especially chocolate fans. It is so easy to cover a cake with ganache. I will probably resort to this instead of frosting again. Another bonus is, if you use dark chocolate  you can make a less sweet frosting if you like. Two downsides to using ganache is there is no real "vanilla" ganache, though using white chocolate may work (I've never tried), and you need to refrigerate the cake to let it set before continuing decorating. 

Once the ganache was set, I did make up a small batch of buttercream. I colored some yellow and some purple, Easter colors of course. Using two piping bags, two open star tips, and two hands, I piped an alternating star border around the bottom of the cake and a rope around the top. Then, I used cookie cutters to gently press the outline of a bunny head and a chick (it's actually an egg, I added the head) into the ganache, as I am not great at free-handed shapes like that. The chick turned out a bit on the big and fat side, but oh well. I filled both shapes in with open star tips, which is a simple technique, but one that always turns out nice  and often one I forget about. I really should use it more often. I added some facial features, then wrote Happy Easter at the top of the cake, and piped on a small Easter egg as well. It is a simple design, but very suitable for Easter!
I hope the Easter Bunny was good to everyone! :)

Bunny Cake From The Past

We seem to always have a cake for Easter. In the past, we usually always made our standard bunny cake. This is where two round cakes are baked. One is used for the bunny's head, the other is cut into three pieces and used for the ears and the bowtie. It is a popular design, and I am sure many of you have seen it before. My father usually made the bunny cake, and iced it, and we helped decorate it with candy and other icing. I particularly like the time we used shredded carrot pieces for the whiskers, as this looked quite neat, and is a bit ironic since bunnies like carrots. This worked well, as we are not licorice fans. However, there is no good picture of this cake, because back in the day, we actually used to focus our pictures on people, and not food.
I can remember a funny story from one Easter. I was quite young, and had only just begun taking French classes at school. My parents used to talk to each other in (limited) French when they did not want me to know what they were saying. But they made a mistake this time, because I was able to pick up two key words, and that was all I needed to hear. Basically, what I heard was, "Blah blah blah, something something...un gâteau de lapin?" Which I immediately reacted to by exclaiming, "Bunny cake!" My mother was asking my father if he was planning on making one that year, and after I caught on, of course the answer had to be yes.
I am not sure if this is the bunny cake from that same year or not, but this cake is from seven yeas ago. Now that we are older, I have taken over a lot of the cake baking and decorating, and i have strayed from just these simple bunny cakes to full-body bunny cakes, basket, cakes, chick cakes, and more. I will have another cake ready for Easter tomorrow!

Hot Cross Biscuits

Hot Cross Buns are a Good Friday tradition, with the crosses representing the crucifixion.  I like the idea of hot cross buns, but the process seems to be a bit much. I love baking and complicated recipes, but I tried making traditional, yeasty hot cross buns before. Not only was the process long and labor-intensive with a lot of waiting, but the buns were not very good at all. they were very, very dry and lacked flavor. So the next year I tried making chocolate hot cross buns. These were much better and tastier (most chocolate things are), but were far from traditional and still a little on the dry side and time consuming. So last year I made hot cross muffins (see April 6th, 2012). These were the best yet, quick, moist, and tasty! This year I tried another take on hot cross buns, which are probably the closest to traditional yet, and I made hot cross biscuits. Just like hot cross buns, but a quick rise version instead of using yeast. They are still spicy, sweet, and chock-full of raisins!

Hot Cross Biscuits
3 cups all-purpose (plain) flour
2 Tablespoons granulated (white) sugar
4 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
3/4 cup cold butter, cut into cubes
1/2 cup raisins or currants, soaked in water for a few ours to plump up, drained and patted well dry
1 large egg
3/4 cup cold buttermilk, plus extra if needed and for brushing tops

Preheat oven to 425◦F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, whisk the first dry ingredients. Cut in the butter, until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in the raisins. Make a well in the center. Mix the egg and buttermilk together and add to the well, mixing with a fork until just moistened.
Pour the scrappy dough onto a work surface and knead lightly just to form into a one inch thick or so round mass. Do not overwork the dough. Add a little extra buttermilk, a Tablespoon at a time, if needed. Cut with a round floured biscuit cutter or glass.
Transfer to prepared baking sheet, and brush tops with buttermilk.
Bake for about 15 minutes until biscuits are golden brown and firm.
Let cool, then pipe on crosses (just use a little icing sugar, vanilla, and water). 

I really like this tea biscuit recipe, and it is quite easy to do. The trick to this is to handle the dough as little as possible - no kneading! It has a nice flavor and texture, and is full of juicy raisins. They are especially good warm. I thought I was doing very well, but then ended up forgetting the spices in the biscuits. The spices are not necessary if you are just making biscuits, but if you are trying to imitate hot cross buns they are. So I just added a little cinnamon and a pinch of cloves to the icing, which is what gives it its brownish color.

Easter Cake Ideas

Every year, I like to make a cake for Easter. I have already made numerous bunny head cakes, a full bunny cake, a basket cake, a chick cake, egg cakes, a white bunny cake, and a brown bunny cake. I have also already made chocolate cakes, carrot cakes, and chocolate carrot cake. I am running out of options. What other flavors and themed cakes are Easter related? I suppose I could do a different type of bunny cake,there are plenty out there. I could also do chick or bird cakes, or a lamb cake. I could do any type of egg cake, a basket cake featuring other things, or cupcakes for a change, although I did do those last year as well. Flavor is a bit trickier to decide on, but I am thinking of a hummingbird cake, which is a moist, springtime cake containing pineapple, banana, pecan, coconut, and often a cream cheese frosting. However, I do feel this might be better suited to a cake that is also decorated with a hummingbird and flower theme, which I don't want to do for Easter. I am thinking of making a cake that is sort of a collaboration of all of these previous ideas and themes. Not for the flavor, of course, as I may just settle for my signature chocolate cake recipe. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, right? There are many candies that can be easily used to decorate Easter cakes, and they include candy coated chocolate eggs, jelly beans, chocolate eggs, peeps, colored coconut, chocolate bunnies, and more. I am sure I will come u with some cute Easter cake, even if I do end up just winging it, though knowing me, I will be sure to plan in advance! 

Macaroon Easter Nests

I have never made macaroons before. I don't even think I have tried one before. I have always wanted to make them, but I'm just not a huge fan of coconut so they were not high up on my list. However, my mother recently did make some for the Easter season. Of course, these are chocolate macaroons. They feature three candy coated chocolate eggs in the middle, so they resemble little Easter nests. They are colorful and chocolaty. Jelly beans or solid chocolate eggs could also be used in the center, but I think these are the most realistic (and tasty). 
This macaroon recipe is quite different from a typical macaroon recipe. While most macaroon recipes get their body from egg whites beaten until stiff, this recipe does not contain any eggs. It does contain a large amount of coconut, and sweetened condensed milk. In addition, these macaroons are chocolate  and the chocolate flavor actually comes from a package of instant chocolate pudding mix, which becomes moistened when mixed with the milk, but not of actual pudding consistency.  The macaroons are then baked, like most macaroon and cookie recipes, and the eggs are pressed in. 
The idea for these Easter nests works with several different cookie recipes, including macaroons, haystacks, and no bake oat drop cookies (see April 9th, 2012). Chocolate cookie recipes work the best. Jelly beans, chocolate eggs, and candy eggs may all be used. 

Easter Treats

I am sure many of us have put quite the significant dent into our collection of chocolates and candy from Easter. Personally, I have not, but that's only because I have been eating all of the baked goods I made for Easter. The Easter Bunny certainly brought a fair share of chocolate to our house. Easter is one of the occasions  where chocolate sales are at a dramatic increase. There are also a few popular candies associated with Easter, such as jellybeans and marshmallow peeps, but mostly it is chocolate. Popular Easter chocolates include miniature chocolate Easter eggs, chocolate cream eggs, chocolate bunnies, and other little chocolates. And who can forget about those delicious candy-coated chocolate mini eggs? Also popular are chocolate shapes, either hollow or even better, solid. These chocolates can be huge, and are most often shaped like a bunny, but also chicks, cats, dogs, and even cartoon characters. My brothers and I used to get one of these every year, but now we prefer smaller, more expensive chocolates. Here is a sample of the Easter treats at out house:

Chocolate Challah Egg Bread

Here is another baked good I made for the Easter season. It is a challah bread, which is basically a rich, four-strand braided egg bread. It is something like a braided Easter egg bread, which is often pictured with colored hard-boiled eggs tucked into the pockets of it braids. I made traditional Easter egg bread last year, so this year I decided to make something a little different. 

This braided challah bread is made just like traditional challah and Easter egg bread, but this version contains chopped chocolate. This bread dough is made from yeast, flour, eggs, plus the addition of two extra egg yolks for richness. It also contains honey in place of regular sugar, and oil instead of butter. The dough is made, kneaded for about 10 minutes, then placed in a bowl to rise for an hour. Then it is punched down, the chocolate is added, and it is divided into four long ropes. Then it is braided, and allowed to rise for another hour, before it is finally baked for about 30 minutes. It is very important with this recipe to oil the dough, just lightly enough to coat it, so that it won't stick and it will be a lot easier to work with.

I used chopped dark chocolate, but my taste-testers thought the recommended semi-sweet chocolate would have been a better match. This bread is a sweet bread, but it is still bread, so it is not overly sweet. Semi-sweet chocolate would have added a hint of sweetness and probably would have worked better, although I did like the dark chocolate, as I am a big fan of dark chocolate. I have never braided anything using four strands before, so bread was probably not the best place to start.  However, I did practice using strings beforehand, but my braiding still din't turn out the best. I also found it a bit difficult to make the end where the strands start into a nice braid. Maybe I should stick to three strands. Looks aside, the bread turned out to be quite tasty. It was light and fluffy, but had a nice, crisp exterior. It was tender and soft, and makes a good snack or breakfast. It would be excellent spread with chocolate hazelnut spread.

Easter Chick Cake

Here is the cake I made for Easter. We always seem to have a cake for Easter, and every year it is different. We used to always make a bunny cake, the classic bunny head where you bake two round layer cakes, use one for the head, and cut the other into two ears and a bow tie. This makes a very cute cake, that can be decorated in many different ways: icing, chocolate, candies, jelly beans, licorice, coconut, etc. We have been making these bunny cakes, and I have helped decorate them for as long as I can remember. Even though every time you make this cake it is different, I was still getting a bit tired of making the same old shape. So two years ago, I decided to make a different bunny cake. For this bunny cake, I made the entire bunny instead of just the head. Again, I baked two round layers. I cut one in half, and stood the two halves together with some icing to hold them, to form the bunny's body. Then I cut a head, a tail, four feet, and two ears from the other layer cake. I made this cake my signature chocolate and used chocolate fudge icing to make a brown bunny. 

Last year, I decided to step away from the bunny theme completely. I made an Easter basket cake. I used two round layers, from a cake recipe that rose very high, which made a nice tall basket. From one of the layers, I scooped out a shallow, round area, leaving a two-inch border around the cake. I stacked them together like most plain birthday cakes. I dirty-iced it in chocolate frosting, then piped more chocolate frosting all over the sides of the cake in a basket-weave design. I added a purple rope border on the bottom, and a yellow on the top. The day before, I had made some sugar cookie dough, and had cut two basket handle shapes for the cake (one was for back-up in case the first broke).I iced these in chocolate icing. With the extra dough, I also baked some bunny shapes and egg shapes. I decorated them with purple and yellow icing and sprinkles. I placed the handle on the cake, and placed the bunny and egg cookies into the shallow opening in the cake. This cake was very fun to make, and I think it turned out really well for my first attempt at anything like this.

This year, I wanted to stay away from the bunny theme again, but I still wanted to do something different from a basket cake. I decided to make a chick cake. I wasn't completely sure how I could go about doing this, so I looked it up online. I found a really easy template for a chick cake, using two round layer cakes, so I followed that. From one cake layer, simply cut a jagged pattern about 3/4 of the way down the cake to make the two pieces of shell. From the other cake layer, cut a straight line about 3/4 or a little more of the way down the cake, then cut that piece in half. This forms the chick body and the arms. I frosted it with cream cheese icing (since I used carrot cake): white for the shell, and yellow for the chick. Then I added some piping, made the face, wrote Happy Easter, and put on some candy-coated chocolates for decoration.  You could also use coconut for both the egg and the chick if you like coconut, just color it yellow for the chick. Then you can still decorate it with candies and more icing. This cake was actually pretty easy and surprisingly quick, or maybe I am just getting better at cakes with practice.

Happy Easter!